Olympus E-620 review

Pressing the OK button brings up the 'super control panel' on the LCD. You can access almost every setting through the display. Some not previously mentioned include face detection (in 'live view' mode); image size and quality; sharpness, saturation, contrast and gradation (normal, low key and high key), plus the picture mode presets (and custom settings) that encompass those; white balance with preview, which includes manual tweaking along amber/blue and green/magenta sliders; and flash compensation and intensity.

At the bottom, beneath the nav buttons, sits the IS button, which controls the sensor-shift stabiliser mode. Like the E-30, in addition to a mode for horizontal panning, the E-620 also has a mode for vertical panning. As with most interfaces for IS, it's very annoying that you have to go to the manual to figure out whether you want IS mode one, two or three -- usually, you don't have it with you when you're trying to remember what mode two is.

The AF target button and programmable 'Fn' button lie beneath your right thumb. You can select one or all of the seven AF points. Options for Fn include face detect, live preview, set manual white balance, return AF point to its default position, enable manual focus, raw+JPEG override, and Olympus' 'my mode' custom settings.

The camera supports exposure, flash and ISO bracketing of three frames in 1/3, 2/3, and full stop increments, as well as three-frame bracketing of white balance in two, four, or six 'steps'. Bracketing isn't very convenient with the E-620, since you've got to delve into the menu system to enable it.

Speaking of the menu system, Olympus rather oddly hides its custom menu tab. You've got to enable it first in the menu system to make the tab appear. Hiding the custom menu doesn't save space or make the camera itself less intimidating. In fact, since you've got to read the manual to find it so you can program the Fn button and set up 'my mode', it will probably cause more confusion than it saves.

But there's plenty to customise here, such as default and high-ISO sensitivity for auto ISO, dial function when used in conjunction with the PASM exposure modes (you can swap traditional settings for exposure compensation), and disabling the blinking focus lights in the viewfinder. You can also choose the focus method to use in live view: the dSLR's AF sensor (phase difference), image AF (contrast AF) or 'hybrid', a combination of the two. The latter uses the contrast AF to approximate focus, then invokes the phase difference AF to lock when shooting.

Because Olympus (along with co-developer Fujifilm) is wedded to its slow, proprietary xD-Picture Card investments, there's an xD card slot in the E-620. Like Sony, with its similarly proprietary Memory Stick Pro Duo, Olympus rectifies that by adding a second slot. However, Olympus includes a CompactFlash slot where Sony and the rest of the manufacturers include SDHC. SDHC makes more sense for users in this market than CompactFlash, since they're moving up from point-and-shoots and probably already have a few of the cards.

Performance
Although not the fleetest shooter in the pack, the E-620 is generally fast enough so that you won't notice any lags except in the case of fast action. It powers on and shoots in 1.4 seconds, which ranks on the slow side for its class. But it focuses and shoots in a respectable 0.4 seconds in good light and 0.8 seconds in dim -- better than the old Nikon D90, although slower than this year's competitors. It typically takes about 0.5 seconds to shoot two consecutive photos, which rises slightly, to 0.8 seconds, with flash.

Its 3.1 frames per second for full quality and resolution JPEGs is okay, but can't keep up with the D5000's 4fps. Olympus' 4fps continuous-shooting rating is for 'normal' quality, not 'fine'. In practice, the AF system feels fast enough to keep up with kids and pets.

The E-620's photo quality is probably its forte. Incorporating the same 12-megapixel Live MOS sensor and TruePic III+ image processor as the E-30, photo quality looks fairly similar. It delivers consistent, accurate and pleasing colours, although outdoor auto white balance is slightly cool. Photos show relatively dependable metering, solid exposures and a dynamic range that rarely clips shadows or blows out highlights.